Lebanon

Engaging Lebanese Youth

One Lebanon Youth Movement

One of the posters generated by the project.

The One Lebanon Youth Movement project, supported by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), aims to empower youth in Lebanon to develop and act upon a more inclusive national identity that emphasizes the common good, shuns sectarian and ethnic divisions and inspires others.

The 2010-2011 project is closely linked to season two of the Kilna Bil Hayy series. SFCG first worked with The Lebanese Center for Policy Studies (LCPS) to conduct eight focus groups, each comprising six girls and boys aged 14-17, to identify issues that divide their communities.

Following these focus groups, four posters on understanding differences, acting on commonalities, empowerment and acceptance of the other were created, based on ideas generated by youth. The goal of the posters is to inspire school system transformation from within and to promote the values of inclusiveness and national unity.

A total of 31,000 (4 x 7,750) laminated posters and 31,000 brochures were printed. The explanatory brochures are meant to help the teachers present the poster campaign to students and effectively and link it to Kilna Bil Hayy.

The posters were distributed to all 1,146 public schools and 1,419 private schools as listed by the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE) across Lebanon's six governorates. Each school received three sets of the four laminated posters as well as 12 explanatory brochures.

Peacebuilding with the Scouts

With support from the Canadian Regional Human Rights and Peace Building Fund, the Entrenching a Culture of Peacebuilding in Lebanon's Schools project was launched in March 2011 for The National Civic Scouts Association (NCSA), which is present in schools across Lebanon under the auspices of MEHE. NCSA is a volunteer organization within schools whose mission is to encourage civic engagement, active participation, collaboration and dialogue among children and youth. SFCG will aim to provide the tools necessary to create a culture of peace and human rights amongst NCSA members, through a range of activities that will strengthen their foundation and ensure a platform for constructive national exchange.

SFCG Lebanon thanks the following donors for their support